Welcome Aboard The CG Barque Eagle
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Click on chart for Eagle's current position
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9 miles northeast of Tenerife, Canary Islands
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We join Eagle as she approaches the Canaries. Today is the last full day underway for the swabs of 2009 class.
All photos are credited: U.S. Coast Guard photograph by Petty Officer Second Class Andrea Rask.
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11 August 2005
The Coast Guard Barque Eagle, homeported in New London, Conn.
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Captain's Log by 2/c Kelly Haupt for Capt. E. J. Shaw
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Eagle is sailing with all sails set only 6 nautical miles east of the tip of the Canary Islands with clear skies and a light wind. Expected to moor up tomorrow morning, much training, cleaning, and pin rail studying still needs to be completed before making our approach to moor for the weekend.
Yesterday, the crew onboard successfully completed a mock fire drill in the first class petty officer lounge. A neglected iron "started" a Class Alpha fire, but the crew quickly put out the hazardous flame.
Complementing the fire drill was an afternoon of damage control training for the swabs. With six stations around the ship, swabs learned the importance of safety and different ways of correcting hazardous situations. Donning fire-fighting gear, learning how to properly use the PKP and AFFF fire extinguishers, and properly rigging a P-100 pump and perry jet, swabs had their first encounter with the different damage control techniques used onboard underway vessels.
Some excitement occurred the other evening when swabs first saw an application of the rules of the road. A crossing situation with another vessel created some anxiety onboard, especially on the bridge, when a give-way vessel was not taking appropriate action and Eagle was forced to sound five short blasts, indicating her doubt of the other ship's intentions. When the give-way vessel did not reply, Eagle was forced to sound again. Although we are still unsure why the small vessel motored so close to us, we suspected no foul intention as the vessel’s crew happily waved to those on the fantail while passing close to our stern. Needless to say, Captain Shaw was not waving back
Today is the last full day underway for the swabs of 2009 class. Square Rigger Olympics will be the highlight of the afternoon, when swabs, cadre, and officers have the opportunity to compete against each other in basic seamanship knowledge, story-telling abilities, and athletic skill. A movie under the stars with ice cream treats will complete the final week for both senior and junior cadets, who will depart Eagle and head back to the Academy on Saturday.
The next phase of the crew's summer will come with a group of 57 officer candidates, whose two weeks on Eagle from Tenerife to Bermuda are part of their 17-week training at the Coast Guard Academy. After the 18-day transit back over the Atlantic Ocean with the OC's, the crew will be motoring back to New London, Conn., to finish their four-month summer of training, sailing, traveling, and time away from home.
10 August 2005 by Swab Brandon Schumann
(L to R) Cadets climb over Eagle's side to go for a ride in Eagle 1 and Eagle 2 and experience small boat operations.
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Yesterday we had a pretty full day. We stood two watches, one which started at a wonderful 4 a.m. Nothing out of the ordinary happened at these watches except that we did spot the first bit of land during our noon to 4 p.m. ops watch, when an appropriate "Land ho!" was given. Yesterday afternoon we went through a damage control round robin, familiarizing ourselves with several different types of damage control equipment. Yesterday was our second 25-hour day because of crossing over time zones.
Eagle's deck department is in charge of maintaining all of Eagle's rigging, decks, and sails--a huge job.
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We had sail stations after dinner. For the first time, I had the opportunity to go aloft. I helped gasket the upper mizzen sail and the gaff topsail. Considering I had almost no experience climbing, I was a little nervous. But after a couple minutes, I was used to it and wasn’t nervous.
Once secured from sail stations, my divisions made sweet tea for the entire crew. A swab in our division from Georgia headed it up. On Eagle, we do a lot of work with the sail stations and watches but fun is also thrown in there. For instance, during our 4 to 8 a.m. watch, swabs danced with mops so it was swabs dancing with “swabs.” All in all, it was a pretty good day on Eagle.
10 August 2005 by Swab Laura Schrage
Food Service Specialist 1st Class Kelly Napier, a reservist and cake designer when not on Eagle, makes a birthday cake for all the August birthdays.
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Eagle's headsails offer a great contrast to the flat horizon.
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So far my time on Eagle has been awesome. I’ve learned so much in only a few short days. I am so glad I have this opportunity. The history of this ship is amazing. Yesterday my group had helm and lookout watch. It wasn’t bad and I find it cool that us swabs can participate in things that matter. I love that we are all learning so much but having fun simultaneously. The weather has been awesome as well. My favorite times at night are lying on the boat deck and looking up at the stars. I have never seen so many in my life. I’m also excited because Mizzen 5 (my division) knows all of the mizzen pin rails, which is sweet because we actually understand the commands being yelled out. As the week is ending, I’ve found a renewed strength and hope for this upcoming year, and I think everyone else has as well.
10 August 2005 by Swab Timothy Ozimek
Electronics Technician 1st Class Frank Buono takes hold of the fore topgallant bunt-leechline during sail stations.
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From the bowsprit, Eagle drives through the swells while making way towards the Canary Islands.
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Eagle is an amazing barque. It is hard to imagine that hundreds of years ago people came up with the types of complex rigging that are used today. It is fun, and somewhat mind-boggling how with properly set sails just a little it of wind can drive an 1824-ton ship though the water. One of the neatest activities I found on the barque is to simply lay down on deck and look up through the masts, rigging, and sails at the sky. Watching how the sails harness the wind’s power or the people climbing in the rigging is something I could do all day. The night makes this activity even more amazing. The sky is incredibly dark and clear, allowing us to see stars that probably can’t be seen with the naked eye almost anywhere on land. The Milky Way has been incredibly clear every night. It almost looks like a lightly glowing stream of clouds. The shooting stars are also unbelievable out at the sea. The combination of these factors along with the silhouettes of the sails makes it seem surreal.
10 August 2005 by Swab Kaitlin Powers
Seaman Thomas Foreman (bottom left) oversees swabs as they make their first climb on the main mast shrouds while underway.
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(L to R) Seaman Holly Cordero coaches swab Brittany Lee while she belays the main clew garnet on the main fife rail.
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Eagle rocks! Watch is my favorite thing in the world, especially when it is in the middle of the night. It’s pretty sweet at night when you can look up at the sky and it is filled with so many stars that it looks fake. Going aloft is fun but it was kind of scary the first time. No one has gotten seasick yet, which is always good. Our division had a sweet tea-making party, which was fun. We made the best sweet tea in the world. I can’t wait to go up to the royals, or the highest sail, I hear it is pretty awesome. We also got to do small boat ops. I got some nice photos of the Eagle from the boats. We’ve also seen dolphins a couple of times, which was cool. They show off for everyone and are so cute.
Sail stations are a lot of fun. Mizzen mast is no. 1! My division had to memorize pin rails and it was a lot easier that I thought. It is more common sense that anything else. Eagle has been awesome but too bad it is almost over.
10 August 2005 by Midshipman 2/c Jordan A. Brye
Eagle travels close to Africa's west coast in the Atlantic Ocean.
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(L to R) Boatswain's Mate 1st Class Thomas Sullivan and Boatswain's Mate 2nd Class Edward Hubbard introduce cadets to small boat operations in Eagle 2.
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My short time spent on Eagle has certainly been an amazing time. Before arriving, I must admit that I did not know what to expect, especially since I am in the U.S. Navy and not the Coast Guard. However, I have quickly acquired a new appreciation for both the ship sailing and the U.S. Coast Guard. The amount of work it takes to sail the beautiful ship is incredible! Every member of the crew works together almost seamlessly to set sails and maneuver her. After we unfurled the sails, I was privileged enough to have the opportunity to climb the main mast to the royal, the highest yardarm on the ship. The view from approximately 130 feet above the waterline was remarkable. I could see to the horizon, which is approximately 10 nautical miles, and was also able to spot some aquatic life. I have also been afforded the opportunity to climb to the course on the foremast with a cadre member. Also joining me was another exchange cadet from the U.S. Air Force. We each saw first hand how important teamwork is on Eagle as we assisted the crew in furling the sails. It was quite a feeling to be hanging on the side of a 1,700-pound yardarm over the Atlantic Ocean. Working together made the evolution safer and faster to complete. The lessons I have learned have been amazing and will surely serve me well in my career as an officer in the United States Navy. So far, sailing on Eagle is an unimaginable journey!
10 August 2005 by Swab Ashley Stone
Guest Maggie Flanagan helps the crew and cadets walk the upper topsail halyard back to lift 1,700 pounds of yardarm.
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Crew and cadre lay to the fore topgallant yardarm to get ready to set during evening sail stations.
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After only a few days underway on Eagle, I have had so much fun! I was able to climb up to the royal, which is the highest sail, 140-feet in the air, for sail stations. While climbing up, I got a little nervous when my foot got stuck while I was trying to contort myself around the lines onto the Jacob’s ladder. The view was gorgeous and the sun shining on the horizon made it one of the prettiest days of my life. I would look ahead and see the bright blue ocean that only met sky and nothing else. Last night we watched Moby Dick on the waist, under the stars, which put all the swabs in such a “salty” mood. After dinner, I attempted to work out; however, trying to ride a stationary bicycle while rocking back and forth on a sailing vessel, does not really work out too well.
The food on board is amazing, definitely better than Academy food. Plus, no one has really gotten sea sick, which is awesome because apparently the other two companies previous to ours had a lot of seasick swabbies. Despite not feeling sick, I always hit my head on the pipes that are on top of my rack. I have to slide into my top rack and attempt to avoid all the piping. Also, I always tend to step on someone while getting into and out of my rack. My trip over to Portugal was also an experience, where I flew on the C-130, which is not exactly a flying craft conducive to passenger carrying. I loved my time in Madeira and trying all of the different Portuguese food and enjoying the culture. I am learning so much working on security watches and other duties. It has been great so far, and I am looking towards the rest of the week.
Machinery Technician 2nd Class Larry Short relaxes by playing his acoustic guitar on the forecastle at the end of a long day.
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Sun rises over Eagle's bridge and mainmast, under full sail on the Atlantic Ocean.
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Eagle's fore mast and main mast have every sail set from the course to the royal while transiting onward to Tenerife, Canary Islands.
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(L to R) 2/c Ysabel Vandeputte shows 2/c Kelly Haupt how to make a stopper on a line.
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(L to R) Swab Erik Heithaus and Boatswain's Mate 1st Class Thomas Sullivan work together on basic line captain skills while manning the fore upper sheet during sail stations.
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(L to R) Lt. Pride Sanders and Lt. j.g. Tahni Holmes discuss sail maneuvers on the bridge.
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View of Madeira, Portugal.
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View of Madeira, Portugal.
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